1. Fatalistic Attitude (4:30)
(Excerpt from Hot Press Magazine, the Mat 30-June 11 issue, 1981, in the article Phillip Lynott is interviewed by former Radiators from Space member, Phillip Chevron.)
"The title track in particular ('Fatalistic Attitude' was the initial title Phillip had in mind for the album, but changed it to 'The Phillip Lynott Album' -Andrew) which still lingers (like a haunting refrain) in my brain, is a devastating evocation of despair in it's many forms. Over an icy cold layer of electronics, Phil sings emotionally about a girl who, losing control of her life, tries to end it, and in failing, loses control over even her death. The narrative is hard and humane, the imagery incisive, and the taped phone in (from a radio station in Buffalo) which weaves in and out of the track puts the final touch to a minor classic".
"Lynott : From the title track of the album you can see it's basically about depression, various forms of depression...eh, it's not like a manic depressive album, knowarrimean, and there will be love songs on it too, like you hear 'Cathleen' ".
2. The Man's A Fool (2:58)
3. Old Town (3:25)
A song Phil wrote about his home town of Dublin. Ireland..
4. Cathleen (3:34)
A song Phillip named after and wrote for his second daughter, Cathleen.
(Excerpt from Hot Press Magazine, the Mat 30-June 11 issue, 1981, in the article Phillip Lynott is interviewed by former Radiators from Space member, Phillip Chevron.)
"(Phil says):" ...That (song) became a challenge after "Sarah". I had visions of the kids fighting about it later, so I had to write a song for Cathleen!"
(An excerpt from the B.P. Fallon Rock Show (A radio show from Dublin) which originally aired 10-6-82 and was rebroadcast on 4-1-86, sadly the day Phillip Lynott passed away)
(Phil says:) "I felt if the album is going to have a title like 'The The Phillip Lynott Album it should definitely relate to me and like with Sarah, Y'know, I thought it was very important that the songs that I write should reflect the events that are major in me life, Y'know and obviously having children are major events."
"... I did 'Sarah' and I had me second child I had to go 'Oh God, now I have to write a song for her as well! If I have lots of children I'll have lots of songs."
5. Growing Up (5:00)
(An excerpt from the B.P. Fallon Rock Show (A radio show from Dublin) which originally aired 10-6-82 and was rebroadcast on 4-1-86, sadly the day Phillip Lynott passed away)
" 'Growing Up' was just, it's
not so much about...for me it's about my children but it's written third
person so it's just about little girls growing up. I think 'Cathleen' is
very personal and 'Growing Up' , anybody can get into it, it's a little
more intense on a general level."
6. Yellow Pearl (2:56) (UK # 14, Jan. 23, 1982)
(An
excerpt from the B.P. Fallon Rock Show (A radio show from Dublin) which
originally aired 10-6-82 and was rebroadcast on 4-1-86, sadly the day
Phillip Lynott passed
away)
"(B.P. says)...anyway folks, there you heard Yellow Pearl, Phil that became as we know, cats and kittens out there, eh the theme song for 'Top of the Pops', were you very surprised?"
(Phil says:) "Yes, I was, it was funny because the people from 'Top of the Pops' , for some reason the producer of the show really liked the song and he came up to me and he said would I write the new theme music for 'Top of the Pops'. So we're in the studio and I'm sort of sayin' , 'What do you want? What type of song are you looking for?' and he went 'something like this Yellow Pearl' and I said 'Why don't you use Yellow Pearl?' and he went 'Good Idea!'."
"When I first recorded it, the version you played there is the second version that was released. When I first recorded it there was no drums. And then they decicided to release it as a single so we put some drums on it and we got Rusty Egan from 'Visage' and he played drums on it and we released it and it went nowhere. Of course when 'Top of the Pops' used it as a theme song, they decided to re-release it again. So, if first you don't have a hit, release it again! We did a remix if it again. The final mix is the best mix and the way you can tell that is that it doesn't have the girl's voice in the start and it's a much better mix. But anyway, it did well...and then it was on that album'Action Tracks' as well, so it made me a fortune. Every time I see 'Top of the Pops' the cash register in me head rings."
(B.P. says:) "How much did you get for 'Top of the Pops'?"
(Phil says:) "Eh...about 2 p (joking), no I don't know (laughs). I wish I'd written the theme song for 'Coronation Street'"
(B.P. says) "I believe that."
7. Together (3:38)
(An excerpt from the B.P. Fallon Rock Show (A radio show from Dublin) which originally aired 10-6-82 and was rebroadcast on 4-1-86, sadly the day Phillip Lynott passed away)
After a rough demo is played on the show, B.P. Says: "There you go, a heavy collectors' item folks. How did that come about Phil?"
(Phil says:) "Well, I wanted to lay down a demo for me new single Y'know, which that's the demo of it. I've been checking out Irish studios I've been in, Windmill Studios and I was in Lombard this particular time doing this and I had a few musicians over and I was laying down that as a demo to take back and play to the powers that be in England and if they like it they'd give me money and I'd make the single. So I was putting it down and Paul Brady was passing through the studio, so I said, ' You want to help us out with a couple of backup vocals?' And he said a couple of ad-lib lines as well. So you know, it was just one of them things. Robbie Brennan was about and he was banging the snare, y'know it was just a demo that we put down. "
"Now sure enough I took it back and this impressed the record company enough to give me a lot of money to then go into the studio and do it again this time. This time as a more dance orientated single type of thing. Because Midge and meself had done 'Yellow Pearl' , I thought well right, to get a different sound than Lizzy I'd get him to do this single."
" So we went in and we used a drum machine and he played a lot of the instruments and obviously Paul didn't drop down to the studio this time. This is the outcome, this will be out in July, mid July this single, so you've got an exclusive here. And this is it, 'Together', the finished product..."
The album version of 'Together' is then played on the show
(B.P. says:) "And that's Phil's forthcoming solo single, not released until next month I believe?"
(Phil says:) "Yeah, so there you go. Just finished it last week before I came back."
"You want to hear a dance mix, I did a Dance mix 'cos the whole reason I did the record I was tired of going to sort of dances Y'know and not being able to hear a sound that ...you could really dance, Y'know. So I really wanted to make a dance record Y'know. Apart from that I've done Y'know a dance mix that like 12" and it's just like, it's like a Dub mix Y'know but it's heavy on the Bass drum and the Bass Guitar."
(Excerpt from Kerrang!, 15th July, 1982)
"One of the new tunes was a song called 'Together'. Destined to be the first single, it's a very danceable record, almost disco. I wondered how Phillip feels theLizzy fans will react when they hear it!"
(Phil says:) "I actually do fret that they think it's Lizzy", he states, "or that it's the way I want to bring Lizzy, because it's not. I hope they'll asses it for themselves and I think the Lizzy supporters are very capable of liking two styles of music from the same artist."
"The reason I'm keen to keep my own thing going as well is because I write an abundance of material that I want to put out. But I can't state quite categorically that Thin Lizzy definitely isn't splitting."
8. Little Bit of Water (3:33)
A song Phil wrote about being Married.
(An excerpt from the B.P. Fallon Rock Show (A radio show from Dublin) which originally aired 10-6-82 and was rebroadcast on 4-1-86, sadly the day Phillip Lynott passed away)
(B.P. says:) "Who played the Harp on the song?"
(Phil says:) "Oh yeah, That's an Irish Harp. The difference between a big Harp and an Irish Harp is that the Irish Harp is sort of a smaller one. So I was fiddling about on the Harp meself then Y'know."
(B.P. says:) "You were the Harp legend!"
(Phil says:) "Yeah...I thought, if there's going to be a Harp, let it be an Irish Harp."
9. Ode To Liberty (The Protest Song)
10. Gino (4:09)
(An excerpt from the B.P. Fallon Rock Show (A radio show from Dublin) which originally aired 10-6-82 and was rebroadcast on 4-1-86, sadly the day Phillip Lynott passed away)
(Phil says:) "The idea of the song eh was, Gino is a specific character who I won't mention Y'know just in case I get sued. But it's a guy who thinks he's, Y'know he walks around thinking he's God, do You know what I mean? This guy thought he was God's gift and eh I recorded the radio voices in the middle of that song in 1976 when I was in America and it was very bizzare, they sold Jesus on the radio like he was a product, you know. Jesus can get you jobs, Jesus can do this, Jesus can do that and send your money here and we'll send you a Bible and You'll find out what Jesus can do for you."
" It was like so parody, you know, I had the recording. So because the guy I'm talking about thought he was running around thinkin' he was God's gift, I thought, 'this would be great', I'll put this in the middle of it. And that's how the song came about and I got together with Mark Nauseef who played on the last solo album. we knocked out the backing track."
"So it has this spiritual feel about it Y'know but it's a bit derogatory, a song called 'Gino'.
(B.P. says:) "A very heavy put down."
11. Don't talk About Me Baby (4:30)